This invention relates to a Brassica canola oil having an elevated oleic acid content and a decreased linolenic acid profile in the seed oil. The invention also relates to methods by which such an oil may be produced.
Diets high in saturated fats increase low density lipoproteins (LDL) which mediate the deposition of cholesterol on blood vessels. High plasma levels of serum cholesterol are closely correlated with atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease (Conner et al., Coronary Heart Disease: Prevention, Complications, and Treatment, pp. 43-64, 1985). By producing oilseed Brassica varieties with reduced levels of individual and total saturated fats in the seed oil, oil-based food products which contain less saturated fats can be produced. Such products will benefit public health by reducing the incidence of atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease.
The dietary effects of monounsaturated fats have also been shown to have dramatic effects on health. Oleic acid, the only monounsaturated fat in most edible vegetable oils, lowers LDL as effectively as linoleic acid, but does not affect high density lipoproteins (HDL) levels (Mattson, F. H., J. Am. Diet. Assoc., 89:387-391, 1989; Mensink et al., New England J. Med., 321:436-441, 1989). Oleic acid is at least as effective in lowering plasma cholesterol as a diet low in fat and high in carbohydrates (Grundy, S. M., New England J. Med., 314:745-748, 1986; Mensink et al., New England J. Med., 321:436-441, 1989). In fact, a high oleic acid diet is preferable to low fat, high carbohydrate diets for diabetics (Garg et al., New England J. Med., 319:829-834, 1988). Diets high in monounsaturated fats are also correlated with reduced systolic blood pressure (Williams et al., J. Am. Med. Assoc., 257:3251-3256, 1987). Epidemiological studies have demonstrated that the xe2x80x9cMediterraneanxe2x80x9d diet, which is high in fat and monounsaturates, is not associated with coronary heart disease.
Intensive breeding has produced Brassica plants whose seed oil contains less than 2% erucic acid. The same varieties have also been bred so that the defatted meal contains less than 30 xcexcmol glucosinolates/gram. Brassica seeds, or oils extracted from Brassica seeds, that contain less than 2% erucic acid (C22:1), and produce a meal with less than 30 xcexcmol glucosinolates/gram are referred to as canola seeds or canola oils. Plant lines producing such seeds are also referred to as canola lines or varieties.
Many breeding studies have been directed to alteration of the fatty acid composition in seeds of Brassica varieties. For example, Pleines and Freidt, Fat Sci. Technol., 90(5), 167-171 (1988) describe plant lines with reduced C18:3 levels (2.5-5.8%) combined with high oleic content (73-79%). Roy and Tarr, Z. Pflanzenzuchtg, 95(3), 201-209 (1985) teaches transfer of genes through an interspecific cross from Brassica juncea into Brassica napus resulting in a reconstituted line combining high linoleic with low linolenic acid content. Roy and Tarr, Plant Breeding, 98, 89-96 (1987) discuss prospects for development of B. napus L. having improved linolenic and linolenic acid content. Canvin, Can. J. Botany, 43, 63-69 (1965) discusses the effect of temperature on the fatty acid composition of oils from several seed crops including rapeseed.
Mutations can be induced with extremely high doses of radiation and/or chemical mutagens (Gaul, H. Radiation Botany (1964) 4:155-232). High dose levels which exceed LD50, and typically reach LD90, led to maximum achievable mutation rates. In mutation breeding of Brassica varieties, high levels of chemical mutagens alone or combined with radiation have induced a limited number of fatty acid mutations (Rakow, G. Z. Pflanzenzuchtg (1973) 69:62-82).
Rakow and McGregor, J. Amer. Oil Chem. Soc., 50, 400-403 (October 1973) discuss problems associated with selecting mutants affecting seed linoleic and linolenic acid levels. The low xcex1-linolenic acid mutation derived from the Rakow mutation breeding program did not have direct commercial application because of low seed yield. The first commercial cultivar using the low xcex1-linolenic acid mutation derived in 1973 was released in 1988 as the variety Stellar (Scarth, R. et al., Can. J. Plant Sci. (1988) 68:509-511). The xcex1-linolenic acid content of Stellar seeds was greater than 3% and the linoleic acid content was about 28%.
Chemical and/or radiation mutagenesis has been used in an attempt to develop an endogenous canola oil having an oleic acid content of greater than 79% and an xcex1-linolenic acid content of less than 5%. Wong, et al., EP 0 323 753 B1. However, the lowest xcex1-linolenic acid level achieved was about 2.7%. PCT publication WO 91/05910 discloses mutagenesis of a starting Brassica napus line in order to increase the oleic acid content in the seed oil. However, the oleic acid content in canola oil extracted from seeds of such mutant lines did not exceed 80%.
The quality of canola oil and its suitability for different end uses is in large measure determined by the relative proportion of the various fatty acids present in the seed triacylglycerides. As an example, the oxidative stability of canola oil, especially at high temperatures, decreases as the proportion of tri-unsaturated acids increases. Oxidative stability decreases to a lesser extent as the proportion of di-unsaturated acids increases. However, it has not been possible to alter the fatty acid composition in Brassica seeds beyond certain limits. Thus, an endogenous canola oil having altered fatty acid compositions in seeds is not available for certain specialty uses. Instead, such specialty oils typically are prepared from canola oil by further processing, such as hydrogenation and/or fractionation.
An endogenous oil obtained from Brassica seeds is disclosed. The oil has an oleic acid content of greater than about 80%, an xcex1-linolenic acid content of less than about 2.5% and an erucic acid content of less than about 2%, which contents are determined after hydrolysis of the oil. Preferably the oleic acid content is from about 84% to about 88% and the xcex1-linolenic acid content is from about 1% to about 2%. The oil may further have a linoleic acid content of from about 1% to about 10%, also determined after hydrolysis of the oil. The oil can be obtained from Brassica napus seeds, for example.
Also disclosed herein is a Brassica plant containing at least one recombinant nucleic construct. The construct(s) comprise a first seed-specific regulatory sequence fragment operably linked to a wild-type microsomal delta-12 fatty acid desaturase coding sequence fragment and a second seed-specific regulatory sequence fragment operably linked to a wild-type microsomal delta-15 fatty acid desaturase coding sequence fragment. Such a plant produces seeds that yield an oil having an oleic acid content of about 86% or greater and an erucic acid content of less than about 2%, which are determined after hydrolysis of the oil. In some embodiments, the plant contains first and second recombinant nucleic acid constructs, the first construct comprising the delta-12 desaturase coding sequence fragment and the second recombinant nucleic acid construct comprising the delta-15 desaturase coding sequence fragment. The delta-12 or delta-15 desaturase coding sequence fragments may comprise either a partial or a full-length Brassica delta-12 or delta-15 desaturase coding sequence.
Another Brassica plant containing at least one recombinant nucleic acid construct is disclosed herein. The construct(s) comprises a first seed-specific regulatory sequence fragment operably linked to a wild-type microsomal delta-12 fatty acid desaturase coding sequence fragment and a second seed-specific regulatory sequence fragment operably linked to a wild-type microsomal delta-15 fatty acid desaturase coding sequence fragment. The plant produces seeds yielding an oil having an oleic acid content of 80% or greater, an xcex1-linolenic acid content of about 2.5% or less and an erucic acid content of less than about 2%, which contents are determined after hydrolysis of the oil. Such a plant may have first and second regulatory sequence fragments linked in sense orientation to the delta-12 and delta-15 desaturase coding sequence fragments, respectively. Alternatively the first and second regulatory sequence fragments may be linked in antisense orientation to the corresponding coding sequence fragments. The delta-12 or delta-15 desaturase coding sequence fragments may comprise a partial or a full-length Brassica delta-12 or delta-15 desaturase coding sequence. The plant may produce seeds yielding an oil having an oleic acid content of 80% or greater, an xcex1-linolenic acid content of about 2.5% or less and an erucic acid content of less than about 2%, which contents are determined after hydrolysis of the oil.
A method of producing an endogenous oil from Brassica seeds is disclosed herein. The method comprises the steps of: creating at least one Brassica plant having a seed-specific reduction in microsomal delta-12 fatty acid desaturase gene expression and a seed-specific reduction in microsomal delta-15 fatty acid desaturase gene expression; crushing seeds produced from the plant; and extracting the oil from the seeds. The oil has an oleic acid content of about 86% or greater and an erucic acid content of less than about 2%, determined after hydrolysis of the oil. The seed-specific reduction in delta-12 or delta-15 desaturase expression may be created by cosuppression or antisense.
Another method of producing an endogenous oil from Brassica seeds is disclosed herein. The method comprises the steps of: creating at least one Brassica plant having a seed-specific reduction in microsomal delta-12 fatty acid desaturase gene expression and a seed-specific reduction in microsomal delta-15 fatty acid desaturase gene expression; crushing seeds produced from the plant; and extracting the oil from the seeds. The oil has an oleic acid content of about 80% or greater, an xcex1-linolenic acid content of 2.5% or less and an erucic acid content of less than about 2%, determined after hydrolysis of the oil. The seed-specific reduction in delta-12 or delta-15 desaturase expression may be created by cosuppression or by antisense.
The term xe2x80x9cfatty acid desaturasexe2x80x9d refers to an enzyme which catalyzes the breakage of a carbon-hydrogen bond and the introduction of a carbon-carbon double bond into a fatty acid molecule. The fatty acid may be free or esterified to another molecule including, but not limited to, acyl-carrier protein, coenzyme A, sterols and the glycerol moiety of glycerolipids. The term xe2x80x9cglycerolipid desaturasesxe2x80x9d refers to a subset of the fatty acid desaturases that act on fatty acyl moieties esterified to a glycerol backbone. xe2x80x9cDelta-12 desaturasexe2x80x9d refers to a fatty acid desaturase that catalyzes the formation of a double bond between carbon positions 6 and 7 (numbered from the methyl end), (i.e., those that correspond to carbon positions 12 and 13 (numbered from the carbonyl carbon) of an 18 carbon-long fatty acyl chain. xe2x80x9cDelta-15 desaturasexe2x80x9d refers to a fatty acid desaturase that catalyzes the formation of a double bond between carbon positions 3 and 4 (numbered from the methyl end), (i.e., those that correspond to carbon positions 15 and 16 (numbered from the carbonyl carbon) of an 18 carbon-long fatty acyl chain. xe2x80x9cMicrosomal desaturasexe2x80x9d refers to the cytoplasmic location of the enzyme, while xe2x80x9cchloroplast desaturasexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cplastid desaturasexe2x80x9d refer to the plastid location of the enzyme. It should be noted that these fatty acid desaturases have never been isolated and characterized as proteins. Accordingly, the terms such as xe2x80x9cdelta-12 desaturasexe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cdelta-15 desaturasexe2x80x9d are used as a convenience to describe the proteins encoded by nucleic acid fragments that have been isolated based on the phenotypic effects caused by their disruption. They do not imply any catalytic mechanism. For example, delta-12 desaturase refers to the enzyme that catalyzes the formation of a double bond between carbons 12 and 13 of an 18 carbon fatty acid irrespective of whether it xe2x80x9ccountsxe2x80x9d the carbons from the methyl, carboxyl end, or the first double bond.
Microsomal delta-12 fatty acid desaturase (also known as omega-6 fatty acid desaturase, cytoplasmic oleic desaturase or oleate desaturase) is involved in the enzymatic conversion of oleic acid to linoleic acid. A microsomal delta-12 desaturase has been cloned and characterized using T-DNA tagging. Okuley, et al., Plant Cell 6:147-158 (1994). The nucleotide sequences of higher plant genes encoding microsomal delta-12 fatty acid desaturase are described in Lightner et al., WO94/11516.
Microsomal delta-15 fatty acid desaturase (also known as omega-3 fatty acid desaturase, cytoplasmic linoleic acid desaturase or linoleate desaturase) is involved in the enzymatic conversion of linoleic acid to xcex1-linolenic acid. Sequences of higher plant genes encoding microsomal and plastid delta-15 fatty acid desaturases are disclosed in Yadav, N., et al., Plant Physiol., 103:467-476 (1993), WO 93/11245 and Arondel, V. et al., Science, 258:1353-1355 (1992).
Brassica species have more than one gene for endogenous microsomal delta-12 desaturase and more than one gene for endogenous microsomal delta-15 desaturase. The genes for microsomal delta-12 desaturase are designated Fad2 while the genes for microsomal delta-15 desaturase are designated Fad3. In amphidiploids, each gene is derived from one of the ancestral genomes making up the species under consideration. The full-length coding sequences for the wild-type Fad2 genes from Brassica napus (termed the D form and the F form) are shown in SEQ ID NO:1 and SEQ ID NO:5, respectively. The full-length coding sequence for a wild-type Fad3 gene is disclosed in WO 93/11245.
The inventors have discovered canola oils that have novel fatty acid compositions, e.g., very high oleic acid levels and very low xcex1-linolenic acid levels. Such oils may be obtained by crushing seeds of transgenic Brassica plants exhibiting a seed-specific reduction in delta-12 desaturase and delta-15 desaturase activity; oil of the invention is extracted therefrom. Expression of Fad2 and Fad3 in seeds is reduced such that the resulting seed oil possesses very high levels of oleic acid and very low levels of xcex1-linolenic acid. The fatty acid composition of the endogenous seed oil, as determined after hydrolysis of fatty acid esters reflects the novel fatty acid composition of such seeds.
The fatty acid composition of oils disclosed herein is determined by techniques known to the skilled artisan, e.g., hydrolysis of esterified fatty acids (triacylglycerides and the like) in a bulk seed sample followed by gas-liquid chromatography (GLC) analysis of fatty acid methyl esters.
In one embodiment, an oil of the invention has an oleic acid content of about 80% or greater, as well as a surprisingly low xcex1-linolenic acid content of about 2.5% or less. The oleic acid content is preferably from about 84% to about 89%, more preferably from about 86% to about 89%. The xcex1-linolenic acid preferably is from about 1% to less than about 2.5%, more preferably from about 1% to about 2%.
The linoleic acid content of an oil of this embodiment typically is less than about 10%, preferably less than about 7%, more preferably from about 2% to about 6%.
Canola seed is crushed by techniques known in the art. The seed typically is tempered by spraying the seed with water to raise the moisture to, for example, 8.5%. The tempered seed is flaked using smooth roller with, for example, a gap setting of 0.23 to 0.27 mm. Heat may be applied to the flakes to deactivate enzymes, facilitate further cell rupturing, coalesce the oil droplets and agglomerate protein particles in order to ease the extraction process.
Typically, oil is removed from the heated canola flakes by a screw press to press out a major fraction of the oil from the flakes. The resulting press cake contains some residual oil.
Crude oil produced from the pressing operation typically is passed through a settling tank with a slotted wire drainage top to remove the solids expressed out with the oil in the screw pressing operation. The clarified oil can be passed through a plate and frame filter to remove the remaining fine solid particles.
Canola press cake produced from the screw pressing operation can be extracted with commercial n-Hexane. The canola oil recovered from the extraction process is combined with the clarified oil from the screw pressing operation, resulting in a blended crude oil.
Free fatty acids and gums typically are removed from the crude oil by heating in a batch refining tank to which food grade phosphoric acid has been added. The acid serves to convert the non-hydratable phosphatides to a hydratable form, and to chelate minor metals that are present in the crude oil. The phosphatides and the metal salts are removed from the oil along with the soapstock. The oil-acid mixture is treated with sodium hydroxide solution to neutralize the free fatty acids and the phosphoric acid in the acid-oil mixture. The neutralized free fatty acids, phosphatides, etc. (soapstock) are drained off from the neutralized oil. A water wash may be done to further reduce the soap content of the oil. The oil may be bleached and deodorized before use, if desired, by techniques known in the art.
A transgenic plant disclosed herein contains at least one recombinant nucleic acid construct. The construct or constructs comprise an oleate desaturase coding sequence fragment and a linoleate desaturase coding sequence fragment, both of which are expressed preferentially in developing seeds. Seed-specific expression of the recombinant desaturases results in a seed-specific reduction in native desaturase gene expression. The seed-specific defect in delta-12 and delta-15 desaturase gene expression alters the fatty acid composition in mature seeds produced on the plant, so that the oil obtained from such seeds has the novel fatty acid compositions disclosed herein.
Typically, the oleate and linoleate desaturase sequence fragments are present on separate constructs and are introduced into the non-transgenic parent on separate plasmids. The desaturase fragments may be isolated or derived from, e.g., Brassica spp., soybean (Glycine max), sunflower and Arabidopsis. Preferred host or recipient organisms for introduction of a nucleic acid construct are oil-producing species, such as Brassica napus, B. rapa and B. juncea. 
A transgenic plant disclosed herein preferably is homozygous for the transgene containing construct. Such a plant may be used as a parent to develop plant lines or may itself be a member of a plant line, i.e., be one of a group of plants that display little or no genetic variation between individuals for the novel oil composition trait. Such lines may be created by several generations of self-pollination and selection, or vegetative propagation from a single parent using tissue or cell culture techniques. Other means of breeding plant lines from a parent plant are known in the art.
Progeny of a transgenic plant are included within the scope of the invention, provided that such progeny exhibit the novel seed oil characteristics disclosed herein. Progeny of an instant plant include, for example, seeds formed on F1, F2, F3, and subsequent generation plants, or seeds formed on BC1, BC2, BC3 and subsequent generation plants.
A seed-specific reduction in Fad2 and Fad3 gene expression may be achieved by techniques including, but not limited to, antisense and cosuppression. These phenomena significantly reduce expression of the gene product by the native genes (wild-type or mutated). The reduction in gene expression can be inferred from the decreased level of reaction product and the increased level of substrate in seeds (e.g., decreased 18:2 and increased 18:1), compared to the corresponding levels in plant tissues expressing the native genes.
The preparation of antisense and cosuppression constructs for inhibition of fatty acid desaturases may utilize fragments containing the transcribed sequence for the Fad2 and Fad3 fatty acid desaturase genes in canola. These genes have been cloned and sequenced as discussed hereinabove.
Antisense RNA has been used to inhibit plant target genes in a tissue-specific manner. van der Krol et al., Biotechniques 6:958-976 (1988). Antisense inhibition has been shown using the entire cDNA sequence as well as a partial cDNA sequence. Sheehy et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 85:8805-8809 (1988); Cannon et al., Plant Mol. Biol. 15:39-47 (1990). There is also evidence that 3xe2x80x2 non-coding sequence fragment and 5xe2x80x2 coding sequence fragments, containing as few as 41 base-pairs of a 1.87 kb cDNA, can play important roles in antisense inhibition. (Ch""ng et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86:10006-10010 (1989); Cannon et al., supra.
The phenomenon of cosuppression has also been used to inhibit plant target genes in a tissue-specific manner. Cosuppression of an endogenous gene using a full-length cDNA sequence as well as a partial cDNA sequence (730 bp of a 1770 bp cDNA) are known. Napoli et al., The Plant Cell 2:279-289 (1990); van der Krol et al., The Plant Cell 2:291-299 (1990); Smith et al., Mol. Gen. Genetics 224:477-481 (1990).
Nucleic acid fragments comprising a partial or a full-length delta-12 or delta-15 fatty acid desaturase coding sequence are operably linked to at least one suitable regulatory sequence in antisense orientation (for antisense constructs) or in sense orientation (for cosuppression constructs). Molecular biology techniques for preparing such chimeric genes are known in the art. The chimeric gene is introduced into a Brassica plant and transgenic progeny displaying a fatty acid composition disclosed herein due to antisense or cosuppression are identified. Transgenic plants that produce a seed oil having a fatty acid composition disclosed herein are selected for use in the invention. Experimental procedures to develop and identify cosuppressed plants involve breeding techniques and fatty acid analytical techniques known in the art.
One may use a partial cDNA sequence for cosuppression as well as for antisense inhibition. For example, cosuppression of delta-12 desaturase and delta-15 desaturase in Brassica napus may be achieved by expressing, in the sense orientation, the entire or partial seed delta-12 desaturase cDNA found in pCF2-165D. See WO 04/11516.
Seed-specific expression of native Fad2 and Fad3 genes can also be inhibited by non-coding regions of an introduced copy of the gene. See, e.g., Brusslan, J. A. et al. (1993) Plant Cell 5:667-677; Matzke, M. A. et al., Plant Molecular Biology 16:821-830). One skilled in the art can readily isolate genomic DNA containing sequences that flank desaturase coding sequences and use the non-coding regions for antisense or cosuppression inhibition.
Regulatory sequences typically do not themselves code for a gene product. Instead, regulatory sequences affect the expression level of the mutant coding sequence. Examples of regulatory sequences are known in the art and include, without limitation, promoters of genes expressed during embryogenesis, e.g., a napin promoter, a phaseolin promoter, a oleosin promoter and a cruciferin promoter. Native regulatory sequences, including the native promoters, of delta-12 and delta-15 fatty acid desaturase genes can be readily isolated by those skilled in the art and used in constructs of the invention. Other examples of suitable regulatory sequences include enhancers or enhancer-like elements, introns and 3xe2x80x2 non-coding regions such as poly A sequences. Further examples of suitable regulatory sequences for the proper expression of mutant or wild-type delta-12 or mutant delta-15 coding sequences are known in the art.
In preferred embodiments, regulatory sequences are seed-specific, i.e., the chimeric desaturase gene product is preferentially expressed in developing seeds and expressed at low levels or not at all in the remaining tissues of the plant. Seed-specific regulatory sequences preferably stimulate or induce expression of the recombinant desaturase coding sequence fragment at a time that coincides with or slightly precedes expression of the native desaturase gene. Murphy et al., J. Plant Physiol. 135:63-69 (1989).
Transgenic plants for use in the invention are created by transforming plant cells of Brassica species. Such techniques include, without limitation, Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, electroporation and particle gun transformation. Illustrative examples of transformation techniques are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,204,253, (particle gun) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,188,958 (Agrobacterium), incorporated herein by reference. Transformation methods utilizing the Ti and Ri plasmids of Agrobacterium spp. typically use binary type vectors. Walkerpeach, C. et al., in Plant Molecular Biology Manual, S. Gelvin and R. Schilperoort, eds., Kluwer Dordrecht, C1:1-19 (1994). If cell or tissue cultures are used as the recipient tissue for transformation, plants can be regenerated from transformed cultures by techniques known to those skilled in the art.
One or more recombinant nucleic acid constructs, suitable for antisense or cosuppression of native Fad2 and Fad3 genes are introduced, and at least one transgenic Brassica plant is obtained. Seeds produced by the transgenic plant(s) are grown and either selfed or outcrossed to obtain plants homozygous for the recombinant construct. Seeds are analyzed as discussed above in order to identify those homozygotes having native fatty acid desaturase activities inhibited by the mechanisms discussed above. Homozygotes may be entered into a breeding program, e.g., to increase seed, to introgress the novel oil composition trait into other lines or species, or for further selection of other desirable traits (disease resistance, yield and the like).
Fatty acid composition is followed during the breeding program by analysis of a bulked seed sample or of a single half-seed. Half-seed analysis useful because the viability of the embryo is maintained and thus those seeds having a desired fatty acid profile may be advanced to the next generation. However, half-seed analysis is also known to be an inaccurate representation of the genotype of the seed being analyzed. Bulk seed analysis typically yields a more accurate representation of the fatty acid profile in seeds of a given genotype.
Procedures for analysis of fatty acid composition are known in the art. These procedures can be used to identify individuals to be retained in a breeding program; the procedures can also be used to determine the product specifications of commercial or pilot plant oils.
The relative content of each fatty acid in canola seeds can be determined either by direct transesterification of individual seeds in methanolic H2SO4 (2.5%) or by hexane extraction of bulk seed samples followed by trans-esterification of an aliquot in 1% sodium methoxide in methanol. Fatty acid methyl esters can be extracted from the methanolic solutions into hexane after the addition of an equal volume of water.
For example, a seed sample from each transformant in a breeding program is crushed with a mortar and pestle and extracted 4 times with 8 mL hexane at about 50xc2x0 C. The extracts from each sample are reduced in volume and two aliquots are taken for esterification. Separation of the fatty acid methyl esters can be carried out by gas-liquid chromatography using an Omegawax 320 column (Supelco Inc., 0.32 mm IDxc3x9730M) run isothermally at 220xc2x0 and cycled to 260xc2x0 between each injection.
Alternatively, seed samples from a breeding program are ground and extracted in methanol/KOH, extracted with iso-octane, and fatty acids separated by gas chromatography.
A method to produce an oil of the invention comprises the creation of at least one Brassica plant having a seed-specific reduction in Fad2 and Fad3 gene expression, as discussed above. Seeds produced by such a plant, or its progeny, are crushed and the oil is extracted from the crushed seeds. Such lines produce seeds yielding an oil of the invention, e.g., an oil having from about 80% to about 88% oleic acid, from about 1% to about 2% xcex1-linolenic acid and less than about 2% erucic acid.
Alternatively, such a plant can be created by crossing two parent plants, one exhibiting a reduction in Fad2 gene expression and the other exhibiting a reduction in Fad3 gene expression. Progeny of the cross are outcrossed or selfed in order to obtain progeny seeds homozygous for both traits.
Transgenic plants having a substantial reduction in Fad2 and Fad3 gene expression in seeds have novel fatty acid profiles in oil extracted from such seeds, compared to known canola plants, e.g., the reduction in both desaturase activities results in a novel combination of high oleic and lower xcex1-linolenic acid in seed oils. By combining seed-specific inhibition of microsomal delta-12 desaturase with seed-specific inhibition of microsomal delta-15 desaturase, one obtains very low levels of seed xcex1-linolenic acid, without adversely affecting agronomic properties.
It is noteworthy that Fad2 and Fad3 cosuppression constructs provide a novel means for producing canola oil having 86% oleic acid or greater. A method of producing a canola oil having greater than 86% oleic acid comprises the creation of a transgenic Brassica plant containing at least one recombinant nucleic acid construct, which construct(s) comprises an oleate desaturase coding sequence expressed preferentially in developing seeds and a linoleate desaturase coding sequence expressed preferentially in developing seeds. A proportion of the plants that are homozygous for the transgenes have seed-specific cosuppression of the native linoleate desaturase. Seeds produced by such transgenic cosuppressed plants are crushed and the oil is extracted therefrom. The oil has about 86% or greater oleic acid and less than about 2% erucic acid. The oleic acid content can be as high as 89%.
Transgenic plants exhibiting cosuppression of Fad2 and Fad3 produce seeds having a very high oleic acid content. This result was unexpected because it was not known if one could obtain plants in which inhibition of Fad2 and Fad3 via cosuppression was sufficient to achieve an oleic acid level of 86% or greater in seeds. Indeed, it was not known if two cosuppressed genes in fatty acid metabolism could be introduced in canola without the first cosuppression gene interfering with the second cosuppression gene, or without adversely affecting other agronomic traits.
Marker-assisted breeding techniques may be used to identify and follow a desired fatty acid composition during the breeding process. Such markers may include RFLP, RAPD, or PCR markers, for example. Marker-assisted breeding techniques may be used in addition to, or as an alternative to, other sorts of identification techniques. An example of marker-assisted breeding is the use of PCR primers that specifically amplify the junction between a promoter fragment and the coding sequence of a Fad2 gene.